Green Room

O’Reilly exposes possible WH connection to Fluke

I am not a big Bill O’Reilly fan, but as The Daily Caller notes, the FOX News Channel host may be on to something.

DC writer Jeff Poor points out that on Thursday’s show, O’Reilly offered a plausible theory of how an obscure activist named Sandra Fluke suddenly rose to prominence at a time when the Obama administration was at the center of a bitter tug of war between organized religion and defenders of the much-maligned HHS mandate that religious institutions purchase contraception for its employees.

In his Monday Best of the Web Today column, James Taranto reports that Fluke was not the initial choice to represent the Democrats in hearings before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. Th was Barry Lynn, of Americans United for Separation of Church and State. But the standard arguments citing the so-called “establishment clause” didn’t make sense in this context. The HHS mandate is clearly a case of the government invading the church’s space.

A better argument was needed. The House Democrats, writes Taranto:

asked, too late, for Fluke [whose bachelor's degree is in “Feminist, Gender, & Sexuality Studies"] to be subbed in for Lynn, then told Lynn not to bother showing up. When the hearing took place, Rep. Carolyn Maloney (this columnist’s congressman, but don’t blame us) demanded: ‘Where are the women?’ Although it was the Dems who chose Lynn over Fluke and the second panel of witnesses included two female members, liberal media dutifully propagated the ‘Republican sexism’ charge. A week later, House Democrats held a mock hearing where Fluke testified.

As we reported last night ‘The Factor’ believes Sandra Fluke contraception controversy was manufactured to divert attention away from the Obama administration’s disastrous decision to force non-Catholic organizations to provide insurance coverage for birth control and the ‘morning after’ pill. That might very well be unconstitutional.

Anyway, we’re having trouble tracking down just who is sending Sandra around to the media. It’s very strange. So far, the 30-year-old activist has appeared on eight national news programs where she was not challenged at all. Last week we called Sandra on her cell phone and invited her on ‘The Factor.’ She didn’t call back. Very unusual.

O’Reilly goes on to reveal that public relations firm SKDKnickerbocker is now representing Fluke. And who is the managing director of SKDKnickerbocker? That would be former White House Communications Director Anita Dunn.

It could all be one big unhappy coincidence. Or it could be that when the White House desperately needed a game-changing distraction to take the heat off, they turned to an old pal. It’s the Chicago way, don’t you know.

Alert skeptics will note that after leaving the White House, Dunn became manager of the Sensible Food Policy Coalition, a group of food manufacturers and media cartels that stood up against the administration’s strong arm tactics to bully advertisers of non-nutrient-dense foods into submission. But that’s the Chicago way, too.

Blowback

Note from Hot Air management: This section is for comments from Hot Air's community of registered readers. Please don't assume that Hot Air management agrees with or otherwise endorses any particular comment just because we let it stand. A reminder: Anyone who fails to comply with our terms of use may lose their posting privilege.

This gal was chosen, simple as that for her views! It would not surprise me a bit for bho or someone now in or was in his team to be involved! It is almost impossible for anyone now days to think they can hind from people who want to track down information on issues. They will get to the bottom of this.
L

It could all be one big unhappy coincidence. Or it could be that when the White House desperately needed a game-changing distraction to take the heat off, they turned to an old pal. It’s the Chicago way, don’t you know.

The whole thing, from the gotcha question to Rick Santorum at one of the debates, has been manufactured. Dear Liar’s political operation cannot run on his record, so what they’ve done is invent a “Republican War on Women” theme.

Fluke’s been an activist for years, I’m sure, just as with Van Jones, they’ve had their eye on her for a while.

Griswold v. Connecticut held that there is a right to contraception, even Scalia is not going to rip apart stare decisis over this issue. and even if he wanted to, a President Santorum would not have the power to ban birth control. This is a phony issue.

While you’re correct in saying that Fluke wasn’t the Dems first choice to testify before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee–I wish to point out that she never spoke before that committee, which is Congress’ chief investigative and oversight committee with government-wide oversight jurisdiction and expanded legislative authority.

I’m irritated because from what I’ve read and heard this week I’ve gotten the impression that a lot of people believe Fluke testified under oath before a legitimate whole House committee when in fact all she did was read a partisan speech before the House Democratic Steering and Policy Committee–a partisan committee for the Dems (Repubs have one too), at a meeting called by committee chair Nanny Pelosi in a snit just to stir the pot to fight her fictitious Republican war on women. I’m just so tired of people treating this incident like it was anything other than another leftist stunt to spew more propaganda.

I wish to point out that she never spoke before that committee, which is Congress’ chief investigative and oversight committee with government-wide oversight jurisdiction and expanded legislative authority.

You’re quite right—which is why I quote James Taranto’s comment that “a week later, House Democrats held a mock hearing where Fluke testified.”